0/"#^e Orofer Ophiuridae. 151 



Frequent among the islands of the Archipelago, in similar situations to those 

 in which we find it in Britain. Most common among the rocks near the water's 

 edge. 



3. Amphiura Chiajii, Forbes. Tab. XIV. fig. 14 — 18. 



A. disco squamis minutis rosulatis, scutellis cuneatis divergentibus apicibus 

 approximatis, squamis radiorum superioribus lenticularibus : inferioribus 

 quadratis sulcatis : lateralibus 4-spiniferis spinis longis, simplicibus. 



Ophiura filiformis, Delle Chiaje (not of Muller). 



Diam. disc, j^ unc. ; long. rad. If unc. 



Disc pentagonal, flat, scaly, the scales very small ; two wedge-shaped shields opposite the 

 origin of each ray, superiorly touching, inferiorly diverging. Upper ray-scales lens- 

 shaped, lower ones square and longitudinally sulcated: lateral ray-plates bearing 4 

 spines each, which are longer than the breadth of the ray, acute, simple, and all of one 

 form, therein differing from those of Amphiura filiformis, to which species it bears a 

 great resemblance and was very naturally referred by Delle Chiaje. The ovarian plates 

 are subpentagonal and small. The rays are generally 7 or 8 times as long as the disc 

 is broad, but their length varies in different specimens. The rays are yellowish, with 

 an orange line down their centres ; the disc is of a dull purplish-brown, with a bright 

 yellow spot on each shield and a yellow margin. The cirrhi are long, simple and 

 white. 



It lives in soft mud, in various depths from 10 to 120 fathoms, throughout 

 the Archipelago and on the coast of Asia Minor. 



Genus Ophiothrix, Muller and Troschel. 



This genus was constituted for the reception of Ophiura rosula and its allies, 

 referred by Agassiz, and afterwards by myself, to Ophiocoma, which Muller 

 and Troschel restrict to Ophiura granulata and some allied species. With this 

 arrangement I entirely concur, and propose the following revised character 

 for Ophiothrix : 



Corpus orbiculare, spinosum, ad peripheriam radiatum ; radiis simplicibus squamosis ; squa- 

 mis superioribus imbricatis ; lateralibus carinatis spiniferis, spinis serrulatis ; ossiculis 

 ovarialibus parvis, oralibus ad latera nudis ; cirrhis pinnatis. 



Ophiothrix rosula. 



Ophiura rosula and Ophiocoma rosula of authors. 



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